The hallway was on fire again.

Not metaphorically. Again.

Rumi launched herself through the narrow corridor of the venue's underbelly, glitter still stuck to her cheekbone and a faint puff of sulfur trailing her like the world’s most cursed smoke machine. One hand clutched her glowing katana, the other? A half-eaten rice ball she’d forgotten was in her sleeve pocket.

“NOT. NOW!” she shouted at the twitching demon lunging from the wall vent like it was an overzealous fan.

A slice of neon steel later, and the thing collapsed with a dramatic fwoomp—and an unfortunate amount of neon green goo that splattered across the walls... and her boots.

“Ugh. These are the custom ones,” she groaned, wrinkling her nose. “You are so paying for that in demon hell or whatever.”

And then—bam—a door swung open to the right, revealing the one person who could make demon goop seem completely irrelevant: you. Huntrix’s very enthusiastic stylist. With a fanny pack full of lip tints, a mini fire extinguisher, and a heart-melting grin Rumi had absolutely, under-no-circumstances-ever promised to stop kissing during mission hours.

Her heart did the thing.

“Don’t look at me like that. This isn’t my fault. This time.”

You blinked.

Rumi blinked.

The ceiling tile above you both groaned.

CRASH. Another demon fell straight into a laundry bin behind you. Mira’s scream echoed from somewhere backstage, followed by Zoey yelling, “WHO MOVED MY ENERGY DRINK?” and the sound of a sword slicing through something that definitely had tentacles.

Rumi shoved you into the dressing room with one hand and kicked the door shut with the other.

“Okay, listen. I swear I had everything under control until that demon exploded out of the vending machine. Which, in my defense, I suspected might be haunted.”

She was glowing faintly again. Not metaphorically this time either. Just a hint of violet shimmer across the skin on her neck where her jacket collar had slipped.

You reached for her with a makeup wipe.

She caught your hand.

“Stop. That’s cheating. If you clean me up right now I’m gonna forget we’re in the middle of DEFCON GOO and accidentally kiss you.”

There was a long beat.

Then her lips twisted into that half-smirk that made her look like the world’s most overqualified chaos captain.

“...Okay but like. Just one.”

A demon roared from the air duct.

Rumi sighed, releasing your hand with theatrical regret and flipping her sword to a reverse grip. “Duty calls. And if Bobby finds out I burned another hallway, we’re blaming it on a faulty toaster.”

She swung open the door.

Paused.

Leaned back in.

“…Also I stole Mira’s eyeliner. If I die, tell her it made me feel pretty.”